Petunia's Letter
by theconsultingtimelady
Summary: What happened when Petunia walked out onto her porch and found Dumbledore's letter?


Petunia yawned and stepped into the kitchen. It was early morning at Number 4, Privet Drive. Vernon was still asleep, as was Dudley, miraculously. She had barely gotten any sleep as Dudley had insisted on wailing half the night away.

There was the crying again. She made it to the bottom of the stairs before she stopped short. The cries were not coming from the nursery upstairs, but rather from outside on the porch. Cautiously, Petunia moved towards the front door, turning the knob as silently as she could.

Privet Drive was still dark. The sun was starting to peak over the roofs of the houses and Petunia could only smile at the beauty and normality of all of the houses.

The sharp cries came again and Petunia looked down. At her feet lay a basket. A small, writhing lump, wrapped in a blanket wriggled impatiently. Petunia knelt down, pushed aside the blanket and found herself face to face with a baby.

The baby's face was red and wrinkled, wet from crying and wailing. Instinctively, Petunia scooped him up into her arms and began to rock him. The blanket came loose and a small envelope flutter to the ground. Petunia stooped again and turned it over. Her heart stopped.

She knew that writing. Decades later and she still knew that writing. She would always remember that writing. It was the same scrawl that had addressed Lily's Hogwarts letter.

Hands trembling, Petunia picked up the basket from the porch, placed the baby back inside and walked back into the kitchen. The baby had stopped crying. She placed the basket on the table and sunk into a chair. Slowly, she placed her finger under the flap of the envelope and began to tear at the paper.

The envelope fell away and Petunia grasped the letter firmly in her hands. The same script glittered; the ink looked as thought it had not dried yet. Petunia began to read.

_To Mr. and Mrs. V. Dursley,_

_My name is Albus Dumbledore. I am the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the school that Lily attended._

_I am writing to inform you that Lily and her husband James are dead. They were killed by Lord Voldemort, a Dark wizard who took many lives. Voldemort is now dead. The boy in the basket is your nephew. He is Harry._

_Both James and Lily sacrificed themselves to save Harry. Lily's love of Harry protected him and it is because of her that he lives today. This protection will hold if he continues to live with you. _

_I understand that you have developed an apparent disdain for magic. I am quite aware of the fact that Petunia and Lily fell out and have not been on speaking terms. Regardless, I expect you to behave as a family to him, for he has no other place to turn to. You are his last existing family members._

_And Petunia, I am very, very sorry._

_Sincerely,_

_Albus Dumbledore_

Harry had begun to cry again, louder this time. Petunia sat in stunned silence, staring blankly at the letter in her hands. She heard the sound of heavy footfalls on the stairs and Vernon stomped into the kitchen.

"What's that bloody noise?" he growled. "Is that Dudley? Why isn't he sleeping-"

Vernon stopped abruptly at the sight of Harry, wailing loudly in his basket on the kitchen table.

"Petunia," he said quietly. "What is going on?"

She handed him the letter wordlessly. He fumbled for reading glasses and proceeded to examine the note, grumbling at certain parts. Once he finished, he ripped the letter clean in two. Petunia leapt up with a cry of horror and snatched the parchment from his hands.

"We're not keeping him, Petunia," he said and made to trudge back upstairs.

"He's not a stray dog, Vernon," she spat back with such ferocity that the pudgy man turned around, startled. She softened her tone and sighed. "He's our nephew."

"Your nephew."

"And what do you want to do?" Petunia asked indignantly. "Leave him on the street? Take him to an orphanage?"

"Why do we need to raise him? Why can't someone of his own…kind do it?"

"His own kind?"

"He should stay with the magic folk," Vernon explained. "That's where he belongs. Not with us."

"The letter says that if he stays with us, he'll be protected-"

"By a magical love protection charm. Do you really believe that?"

"I believe my sister is dead."

Vernon quieted immediately. Petunia looked down at the ground, studying the linoleum floors.

"Petunia…"

"I'm not saying you need to treat him like your son."

"I most certainly won't!"

"But he is staying with us. And that is final."

Neither Dursley said anything.

"Now go back to bed and I'll wake you soon."

"Petunia…"

"I will see you shortly, Vernon. We can talk more about this later."

Vernon trudged back out of the kitchen and Petunia listened to each plodding step. She turned back to look at little Harry and gasped. In the chaos of the argument, Harry had stopped crying and had opened his eyes.

They were her eyes.

Petunia felt a tear escape from her own eyes. And another.

"Lily, I'm so sorry," she whispered, over and over. "I'm so sorry."

* * *

I love Aunt Petunia's deleted scene from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1. For anyone who hasn't seen it, I recommend checking it out on YouTube. I don't believe that Petunia could've been completely emotionless when she found out about the fate of her sister. I certainly wouldn't have been.

Thanks for reading!


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